Ex-Oklahoma death row inmate Richard Glossip pleads guilty to lesser charge in 1997 killing

Ex-Oklahoma death row inmate Richard Glossip pleads guilty to lesser charge in 1997 killing Advertisement Updated: 4:31 AM CST Nov 13, 2026 Editorial Standards ⓘ Olivia Hickey Reporter Ex-Oklahoma death row inmate Richard Glossip pleads guilty to lesser charge in 1997 killing Updated: 4:31 AM CST Nov 13, 2026 Editorial Standards ⓘ Olivia Hickey Reporter OKLAHOMA CITY — Former Oklahoma death row prisoner Richard Glossip, who spent nearly 30 years incarcerated and was on the brink of execution three times for a 1997 killing, pleaded guilty to a lesser charge Thursday. Glossip had been sentenced to death over the killing in Oklahoma City of his former boss, motel owner Barry Van Treese. Van Treese was beaten with a baseball bat in what prosecutors have alleged was a murder-for-hire scheme. Advertisement Another man, Justin Sneed, admitted robbing and killing Van Treese, but testified that he did so after Glossip promised to pay him $10,000. Sneed was the state’s key witness against Glossip and was sentenced to life in prison. The U.S. Supreme Court previously threw out Glossip’s conviction, and he was released on bond in May to await retrial. His longstanding claims of innocence have drawn support from Kim Kardashian and other prominent figures. With Glossip's plea to a lesser accessory charge, the murder charge was dismissed, said Don Knight, Glossip’s attorney. He said Glossip will be sentenced in December, when he could be released or sent back to prison for another 15 years. "I'm grateful for all my attorneys and all their hard work, and I'm grateful to you standing by my side," Glossip said. WATCH: Richard Glossip pleads guilty to accessory charge in 1997 murder case “We believe Rich has more than paid his debt to society by spending nearly 30 years on death row, during which time he was served three last meals and came within minutes of being executed for a crime he did not commit,” Knight said. Accepting the plea to a lesser charge “was a difficult decision for me and, more importantly, the Van Treese family. We both recognize that this path ensures a conviction related to Mr. Van Treese’s killing and gives us the best chance to secure additional prison time for Glossip,” Drummond said. By pleading guilty to being an accessory, Knight said Glossip acknowledged the prosecution’s allegations that he helped place plexiglass over a broken window at the motel. Van Treese’s body was inside the room, but Glossip did not know it was there and never saw it, Knight said. The prosecution also said Glossip did not immediately tell police that Sneed had told him he killed Van Treese. Knight said Glossip did not believe that was true at the time. “He had nothing to do with the murder, none of the planning, or carrying it out,” Knight said. During his time on death row, courts in Oklahoma set nine different execution dates for Glossip, and he came so close to being put to death that he ate three separate last meals. In 2015, he was even held in a cell next to Oklahoma’s execution chamber, waiting to be strapped to a gurney and die by lethal injection. But the scheduled time for his execution came and went. Behind the walls of the Oklahoma State Penitentiary, prison officials were scrambling after learning one of the lethal drugs they received to carry out the procedure didn’t match the execution protocols. The drug mix-up ultimately led to a nearly seven-year moratorium on executions in Oklahoma. Van Treese’s family had asked the U.S. Supreme Court to leave Glossip’s conviction and sentence intact. Glossip’s case attracted international attention after actress Susan Sarandon — who won an Academy Award for her portrayal of death penalty opponent Sister Helen Prejean’s fight to save a man on Louisiana’s death row in the 1995 movie “Dead Man Walking” — took up his cause in real life. Glossip’s case was also featured in the 2017 documentary film titled “Killing Richard Glossip.” Two executions bring US closer to 40 this year as death penalty draws renewed scrutiny Make WISN a preferred source on Google Add Preferred Source Share Infinite Scroll Enabled Top Picks VIDEO: Frankie Muniz says he's recovering after crash at Daytona International Speedway Newly released Ring camera shows Brooklyn building collapsing WATCH: Master carver engraves crystals from last year's New Year's Eve ball Anthony Clark, a comedian and actor who starred on 'Yes, Dear,' dies